Disposable brush and sanitary handle



Dec. 14, 1965 A. c. PETERKA 3,222,705

DISPOSABLE BRUSH AND SANITARY HANDLE Filed Feb. 5, 1964 INVENTOR. ALBERT C. PETERKA United States Patent 3,222,705 DISPUSABLE BRUSH AND SANITARY HANDLE Albert C. Peterlra, 756 W. .lst Place, Mesa, Ariz. Filed Feb. 3, I364, Ser. No. 342,078 6 (Ziaims. (Cl. 15-476) This invention relates to a disposable brush sanitary handle and more particularly to a disposable brush which may be used by barbers so that an individual brush may be used on each customer and disposed of after use on such customers whereby sanitary conditions of barber practice may be maintained.

Various prior art disposable brushes have been known to the barbering profession, however, the disposable brushes which are now conventional and the handles which removably hold these brushes are generally provided with mechanisms having openings and/ or crevices around the disposable brush which collect hair and other foreign matter and create an unsanitary condition. It has been recognized that a disposable brush must be removably held in a sanitary holder which does not collect hair, particles and transfer them from one customer to another.

Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a disposable and sanitary handle wherein a disposable and expendable brush is closely fitted into an opening in a sanitary handle whereby hair or other foreign matter from a customer does not collect in the handle around the brush and consequently preventing the transfer of hair or other foreign matter from one customer to another due to the fact that the expendable brush is disposed of following the use thereof on each customer.

Another object of the invention is to provide a disposable and expendable brush and sanitary handle wherein a spiral wound slitted paper forms a disposable brush having a shank intimately fitted in an opening in the handle and wherein a portion of the handle is rotatable with respect to another portion of the handle to actuate cams internally of the opening compressively to engage a shank of the spiral wound structure of the brush removably to hold it in connection with the handle so that the brush may readily be inserted and locked into position and may readily be relieved from the handle after being used so that expendable brush is readily connectable and disposable relative to the handle.

Another object of the invention is to provide a disposable brush and sanitary handle having novel means for locking an expendable brush into the handle comprising a rotary sleeve which is externally smooth without crevices and which has an opening closely fitted to a shank of an expendable brush whereby the smooth annular external surfaces of the handle and its locking mechanism are not susceptable of collecting hair or foreign matter and thereby maintaining external surfaces which are easy to keep clean and consequently very sanitary.

Further objects and advantages of the invention may be apparent from the following specification, appended claims and accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of an expendable and disposable brush and sanitary handle and showing the brush in removed position relative to the handle;

FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken from the line 22 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a sectional View taken from the line 3-3 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken from the line 4-4 of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view taken from the line 5-5 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary side elevational view of a slitted strip of paper or other expendable material used to form a spiral wound disposable brush of the invention;

FIG. 7 is a sectional view taken from the line 77 of the shank of the spiral wound expendable brush of the invention; and

FIG. 8 shows a modified handle structure, partly in section, provided with a frusto-conical socket adapted to receive a modified disposable brush.

As shown in FIGS. 1, 6 and 7, the expendable and disposable brush of the invention comprises a brush structure 10 formed from a flat sheet of soft paper 12, shown in FIG. 6 of the drawings. This sheet originally is provided with opposite edges 14 and 16 and is provided with transverse slits 18 separating the sheet 12 into a plurality of adjacent flexible fingers. The slits 18 terminate at 20 in spaced relation to the edge 16 to provide a band portion 22 which is wound into a spiral structure 24, each spiral convolution being contiguous with each other to provide a solid shank 24 which is adapted to fit tightly into an opening 26 of a rotating cap 28 of a handle 30. It will be seen that the brush 10 due to the slitted portions 18 of the sheet 12 is provided with a great plurality of flexible soft paper fingers which serve very nicely as a brush for brushing hair from the necks of customers in barber shops.

The spiral wound shank 24 fitted tightly in the opening 26 prevents hair from collecting in the cap 28 and due to the fact that the cap 28 is provided with a smooth fiat end surface 32 surrounding the opening 26, hair is unable to collect on or be retained by the cap 28 which is also provided with a smooth annular external cylindrical surface 34. This surface 34 and the surface 32 are easy to wipe off and maintain in clean sanitary condition and are therefore capable of being sanitary since they have no crevices or surfaces which will collect and hold hair or other foreign matter.

The cap 28 is provided with a skirt edge 36 fitted closely adjacent a shoulder 38 of the handle 30 in such a manner as to prevent hair from collecting between the skirt 36 of the shoulder 38, as will be hereinafter described. Thus, the cap 28 may be rotated relative to the handle 30 at the skirt 36 adjacent the shoulder 38.

Referring to the disclosure of FIGS. 3 and 4, it will be seen that a cap 28 at its skirt 36 is fitted very closely with relation to the shoulder 38 and is rotatable relative to the handle 30 and the cylindrical portion 34 of the cap 28is rotatable around a head portion 40 integral with the handle 30. This head portion is a cylindrical structure having an external annular surface 42 around which an internal annular surface 44 of the cylindrical portion 34 rotates. The cylindrical portion 34 of the cap 28 is provided with inwardly projecting detent portions 46 and 48 which are engaged in respectively slots 50 and 52 in the head portion 40 of the handle 30. These slots 50 and 52 are arcuate and limit rotational movement of the cap 28 relative to the head 40, as will be hereinafter described.

The detent portions 46 and 48 are initially snapped over the head portion 42 due to resilience of the plastic material of which the cap 28 is made so that once the structure is assembled it is maintained in very closed tolerance assembly to hold the skirt 36 and shoulder 38 closely together to prevent hair or other foreign matter from collecting therebetween.

The head portion 40 of the handle 30 is provided with a central brush receiving bore 54 which aligns with the opening 26 of the cap 28. This bore 54 is disposed to receive the spiral shank 24 of the brush 10, as indicated by broken lines in FIG. 3 of the drawings.

The head 4%) is provided with bearing recess portions 56 and S8 axially parallel to the bore 54 and rotatably supporting hearing pins 60 and 62, respectively, of brush shank grasping earns 64 and 66. These cams, as shown in FIG. 2 of the drawings, are provided with inwardly directed brush engaging portions 68 and 70, respectively, which are projectable into an area inwardly of the peripheral boundaries of the opening 26 and bore 54 compressively to engage the shank 24 of the brush 19.

The cam members 64 and 66 are provided with curved cam surfaces 72 and 74, respectively, which are opposed to the inwardly directed brush engaging portions 68 and 70. These surfaces 72 and 74 are engageable by inwardly directed rotatable projections 76 and 78 of the cap 28 so that when the cap 28 is rotated in a clockwise direction, as shown in FIG. 2, the brush engaging portions 68 and 70 are forced inwardly and when the engaging portions 76 and 78 are moved in a counterclockwise direction by rotation of the cap 28 they are moved to positions B and C, wherein they engage releasing ledges 8t and 82 of the cam members 64 and 66, said ledges 80 and 82 being outwardly of the centers of the bearing pins 60 and 62, whereby the cam members 64 and 66 are engaged and pivoted outwardly to carry the brush engaging portions 68 and 70 away from the brush shank 24 in the opening 26 and in the bore 54. The projections 76 and 78 are limited in their movement by means of the detents 46 and 48 traversing the slots 50 and 52 from end to end, as hereinbefore described.

It will be seen that the cam members 64 and 66 are retained between the end 32 of the cap 28 and an end surface 84 of the body portion 40 of the handle 30.

The handle 30 is provided with a reduced diameter shank portion 86 having an enlarged portion 88 at itsopposite end from the body portion 40 and this portion 88 provides a base upon which the handle 30 may rest during a nonuse condition, thus, the handle 30 may be set upon the base 88 and the opening 26 may be directed upwardly so that a shank 24 of the brush may be quickly and readily inserted therein.

In operation a new brush 10 is used on each customer and immediately disposed of after brushing the customer. The opening 26 being very intimately and tightly fitted around the shank 24 prevents hair from getting into the mechanism of the holder and the outside of the cap 28 is very smooth so that it may readily be wiped clean and maintained in a very sanitary condition.

Rotation of the cap 28, as hereinbefore described, causes the cam end portions 68 and 70 to hold the shank 24 of a brush 10 and rotation of the cap 28 in the opposite direction, as hereinbefore described, permits the shank 24 to be released by retraction of the cam portions 68 and 70 so that the brush 10 may readily be discarded.

In the modification as shown in-FIGURE 8 of the drawings a modified handle structure 90 is provided with a frusto-conical socket 92 which converges inwardly from an open end 94 of the socket. This open end 94 corresponds with the opening 26 of the structure shown in FIG- URES 2 and 3 of the drawings, and it will be here noted that the opening 26 is an inwardly converging tapered opening and that the socket 54 is an inwardly converging tapered socket, as will he apparently useful from the following description relative to the modification shown in FIGURE 8 of the drawings.

This inwardly converging socket 92 is adapted to receive a modified disposable brush 96 formed of a spiral roll of slitted paper designated 12 in FIGURE 6 of the drawings. The band portion 22 of this paper being rolled into spiral form so that the slitted sections forming soft fingers provide a brush, as shown best in FIGURE 1 of the drawings. The shank of this brush when rolled into spiral form according to the modification shown in FIGURE 8 of the drawings is dipped into a hardening fluid up to an area 98 so that a lower section of the shank of the brush from its lower end 100 to the area 98 is dipped into a hardening solution and permitted to dry, thereby providing a hard conical tip at the lower end of the brush shank which may be forced into a taper lock fit in the inwardly converging or tapering socket 92. Thus the modification of the invention is such that the upper portion of the shank of the brush at 102 is soft material and is compressively fitted in the open end 94 of the socket 92, thereby tightly fitting the open end and preventing air or other foreign matter from getting into the socket 92 around the shank of the brush, and also preventing the escape of any material therefrom when the brush is in use. Each disposable brush 96 may be pulled out of the socket 92 and subsequently a new one forced thereinto, whereby the hardened section between the end and the area 98 wedges into the tapered socket. This hardened section may be provided by any suitable hardening resin which is ordinarily a fluid and which subsequently hardens, or any other material which may provide a hardened surface at the outside of the brush shank to permit it to lock into the tapered socket 92. As for example, a tapered metal or plastic band surrounding the shank may be used to provide a lock for the lower end of the brush shank in the internally tapered socket 92 of the handle 90.

It will be obvious that the tapered bore 54 and tapered opening 26 shown in FIGURES 2 and 3 of the drawings also may be used to hold the shank of the brush in addition to the cam locking means disclosed hereinbefore with reference to FIGURES 2 and 3 of the drawings.

It will be obvious to those skilled in the art that various modifications of the present invention may be resorted to in a manner limited only by a just interpretation of the following claims.

I claim:

1. In a disposable brush and sanitary handle the combination of: a disposable brush having a substantially cylindrical shank; a handle for said brush in which it is removably secured; said handle having an opening in one end tightly engaged by the shank of said brush to prevent foreign matter from accumulating inwardly of the handle and around the shank of the brush; said handle having a cap in which said opening is disposed; a body of said handle upon which said cap is rotatably mounted; and means, actuated by relative rotation of said cap and said body for gripping said shank of said brush internally of said opening.

2. In a disposable brush and sanitary handle the combination of: a disposable brush having a substantially cylindrical shank; a handle for said brush in which it is removably secured; said handle having an opening in one end tightly engaged by the shank of said brush to prevent foreign matter from accumulating inwardly of the handle and around the shank of the brush; said handle having a cap in which said opening is disposed; a body of said handle upon which said cap is rotatably mounted; and means, actuated by relative rotation of said cap and said body for gripping said shank of said brush internally of said opening; cam means having cam surfaces; means carried by said cap and directed inwardly for actuating said cam means into interference with said opening and for forcing said cam means to grip said shank of said brush.

3. In a disposable brush and sanitary handle the combination of: a disposable brush having a substantially cylindrical shank; a handle for said brush in which it is removably secured; said handle having an opening in one end tightly engaged by the shank of said brush to prevent foreign matter from accumulating inwardly of the handle and around the shank of the brush; said handle having a cap in which said opening is disposed; a body of said handle upon which said cap is rotatably mounted; and means, actuated by relative rotation of said cap and said body, for gripping said shank of said brush internally of said opening; cam means having cam surfaces; means carried by said cap and directed inwardly for actuating said cam means into interference with said opening and for forcing said cain means to grip said shank of said brush; said cap having a smooth outer cylindrical surface and a smooth end portion in which said opening is disposed,

4. In a disposable brush and sanitary handle the combination of: a disposable brush having a substantially cylindrical shank; a handle for said brush in which it is removably secured; said handle having an opening in one end tightly engaged by the shank of said brush to prevent foreign matter from accumulating inwardly of the handle and around the shank of the brush; said handle having a cap in which said opening is disposed; a body of said handle upon which said cap is rotatably mounted; and means, actuated by relative rotation of said cap and said body for gripping said shank of said brush internally of said open ing; cam means having cam surfaces; means carried by said cap and directed inwardly for actuating said cam means into interference with said opening and for forcing said cam means to grip said shank of said brush; said cap having a smooth outer cylindrical surface and a smooth end portion in which said opening is disposed; one end of said handle having a base of enlarged diameter disposed to support said handle in upright position to hold said opening in an upward direction for receiving the shank of said brush.

5. In a disposable brush and sanitary handle the combination of: a handle body member having a shank receiving recess therein; a cylindrical cap rotatable on said body member and having an end disposed over the end of said body member; said end having an opening therein aligned with the recess of said body member; cam means pivotally mounted on said body member and disposed between said body member and said end of said cap; means on said cap engaging said cam members for pivoting them inwardly and outwardly relative to said recess and said opening in said cap for engaging a shank of a brush insertable into said recess.

6. In a disposable brush and sanitary handle the combination of: a handle body member having a shank receiving recess therein; a cylindrical cap rotatable on said body member and having an end disposed over the end of said body member; said end having an opening therein aligned with the recess of said body member; cam means pivotally mounted on said body member and disposed between said body member and said end of said cap; means on said cap engaging said cam members for pivoting them inwardly and outwardly relative to said recess and said opening in said cap for engaging a shank of a brush insertable into said recess; detent means holding said cap on said body member, but permitting rotation thereof with respect to said body member for actuating said cams.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 53,368 3/1966 Wells et al 279-33 844,091 2/1907 Borchert 279-33 1,388,127 8/1921 Schatte 15-194 1,641,721 9/1927 Wilcott et al. 15-194 1,683,538 9/1928 Francois 15-226 1,734,873 11/1929 Neissel 15-194 1,837,154 12/1931 Farone 16-225 2,825,080 3/1958 Bongiovanni 15-226 X FOREIGN PATENTS 1,063,735 12/1953 France. 1,160,521 3/1958 France.

151,080 5/ 1904 Germany.

CHARLES A. WILLMUTH, Primary Examiner. 

1. IN A DISPOSABLE BRUSH AND SANITARY HANDLE THE COMBINATION OF: A DISPOSABLE BRUSH HAVING A SUBSTANTIALLY CYLINDRICAL SHANK; A HANDLE FOR SAID BRUSH IN WHICH IT IS REMOVABLY SECURED; SAID HANDLE HAVING AN OPENING IN ONE END TIGHTLY ENGAGED BY THE SHANK OF SAID BRUSH TO PREVENT FOREIGN MATTER FROM ACCUMULATING INWARDLY OF THE HANDLE AND AROUND THE SHANK OF THE BRUSH; SAID HANDLE HAVING A CAP IN WHICH SAID OPENING IS DISPOSED; A BODY OF SAID HANDLE UPON WHICH SAID CAP IS ROTATABLY MOUNTED; AND MEANS, ACTUATED BY RELATIVE ROTATION OF SAID CAP AND SAID BODY FOR GRIPPING SAID SHANK OF SAID BRUSH INTERNALLY OF SAID OPENING. 